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Sunday, November 02, 2008

Political Cartoons

Election day is close at hand. It got me thinking about the Political Cartoon and it's power. These cartoons allow the artist to communicate a complex situation in a quick and direct way. The site I have linked to this post title is a page from Dr. Paul Parker's university website. He teaches political science at Truman State University in Missouri. This webpage is a wonderful little history of the political cartoon. He outlines the 4 things an effective political cartoon need to have: 1) good artistry, 2) genuine sentiment, 3) uncomplicated imagery and 4) the subject must be of lasting nature.

I teach Art I and Speech Communication (one semester credit of each). I mix the two disciplines up all year to make it more fun and interesting for both student and teacher. Art and Speech are both about communication! It is a wonderful interdisciplinary combination. A persuasive speech is typically on the list for the year and political cartoons are perfect for the speech's visual aid. This gives my students a chance to try their hand at political cartooning.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I saw these and I thought they were soo funny. It kind of shows our countries love for pop culture icons! lol Go check them out!

http://www.caglepost.com/cartoon/Aislin/56583/New+American+bumper+sticker.html

http://www.caglepost.com/cartoon/Christo+Komarnitski/56993/PalinandJoe+2012+-+COLOR.html


Talking about who will win I can't wait for the party on Tuesday.
(It's Laura by the way)

Anonymous said...

Wow.
I never knew political cartoons had such a history. I think that because the problems that create fodder for them are usually bad ones, most political cartoons have some somber tones mixed in with the humor.
Lord knows we could use some laughs in politics.

-Liam M., Ms. Miller's Art/Speech I, per. 2

Anonymous said...

political cartoons have always fascinated me...even though i may not understand all of them they really portray a powerful image of the greater picture...
and i would also like to agree with Liam...they don't always portray appropriate tones but oh well...no one ever said politics would always be clean